Origin

S.H.I.E.L.D. was formed by Nick Fury, in the period after World War II. However, he figured the U.S. government wouldn't want a group like that, so he disbanded it. Later, though, after a terrorist attack, he noticed that a group like S.H.I.E.L.D. could really have helped and prevented the disaster. So he reformed it. Meanwhile, the United Nations had already taken S.H.I.E.L.D. and restarted it, having Colonel Rick Stoner becoming the first Director of the organization. Fury immediately joined and rose to the top. The Nations had reformed it in response to a HYDRA attack, and once Fury was leading it, it flourished.

Creation

Team Evolution

S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Hazard Intervention, Espionage and Logistics Directorate) or Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law enforcement Division (see Iron Man #227) is a group affiliated with the U.N that deals with superhuman threats. It is an intelligence and anti-terrorism group similar to the FBI, only it is an international corporation that spans all the world. It acts like the police force. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents are armed and work well, much more effective then standard police. They fight terrorists as well as super humans. S.H.I.E.L.D. also has been responsible for the starting of spin-off groups like S.W.O.R.D. and S.T.R.I.K.E. S.H.I.E.L.D. has agents that also are higher level, that often are super humans. Captain America, Spider-Woman, and Iron Man all have operated as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. S.H.I.E.L.D. keeps ties to the superhuman community, too-they often call on the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and Captain America.

S.H.I.E.L.D. has superhuman agents in the past-two teams were formed in an effort to make a S.H.I.E.L.D. superhuman team. The first team consisted of Marvel Man, Texas Twister, the Vamp, and Blue Streak. However, it quickly failed, and another team in the same vein also failed. The Psi-Division of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a group of psychics or telepaths that deal with psionic menaces. This is only one of the groups of super humans that work in S.H.I.E.L.D. for the greater good.

All S.H.I.E.L.D. members have a certain level, based on their importance. A normal S.H.I.E.L.D. agent will have a Level One-which means he can pass through Level One areas and has clearance. A sergeant might have Level Two, which means he has Level Two and One clearance. The Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. has a Level Nine clearance. Level Ten means the most important person in the world-no one currently possesses a Level Ten clearance. Not even the President, or Nick Fury.

S.H.I.E.L.D. has many bases around the world. Many are on land-most notably S.H.I.E.L.D. Central, which is located in New York City. There are also many shelters that are secretly placed around the world. Fury has used one, as has the Secret Avengers when they needed a base during the events of Civil War. However, their most famous and important base is the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier.

The Helicarrier is an aircraft that is constantly in the air. It is huge enough to hold an aircraft carrier. It is the mobile headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D. and is extremely protected. The Helicarrier has held an entire squadron of jet fighters and a nuclear ballistic missile. There is one major Helicarrier, which is the one that is most important and used. There are also many smaller Helicarriers, however, which all serve as bases too. The Helicarrier has an extremely high level of security-even if someone managed to get on without clearance, guards and extremely powerful security technology would have them gone in a second. The Helicarrier was first proposed by Stark Industries, and was designed by Tony Stark, Forge, and Mr. Fantastic.

S.H.I.E.L.D. operated as a covert, military/intelligence agency at the time, and members of it had already appeared. S.H.I.E.L.D. already fought HYDRA then-the evil group had plots like the aforementioned "Overkill Horn". A.I.M. made its first appearance, and individual villains such as Red Skull also popped up and needed to be stopped by S.H.I.E.L.D.. At this time, Godzilla came, and the Godzilla Squad was formed to take the monster down. S.H.I.E.L.D. had tough periods during this time. Several lifelike robots got so smart that they became able to think and make choices-they became sentient beings. They had a grudge against S.H.I.E.L.D. for making them follow orders all the time before they had intelligence-so they drugged important S.H.I.E.L.D. members and took their place within the organization. Several of these were Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine, Jimmy Woo, and Jasper Sitwell, among others. However, the valiant Fury managed to take them down.

Fury's Influence

Most of the reason that S.H.I.E.L.D. was so effective started with Fury. He started the group and put good, effective agents in place. He was extremely popular in and out of S.H.I.E.L.D. and had strong ties with the hero community. Without him, many "pessimists" and intellectuals theorized that S.H.I.E.L.D. would fall, and fall hard.

Unfortunately, they were right. S.H.I.E.L.D. ran into disastrous times. As aforementioned, Nick Fury did a mission in Latveria to stop them from attacking the U.S. However, it was totally unauthorized, and Fury was forced to resign from S.H.I.E.L.D. Warrants went out for his arrest. The new head of S.H.I.E.L.D. was Maria Hill-who proved to be incompetent at the position. The President of the U.S. was a driving force behind Hill's election-for two reasons. Hill was an American, so the President expected her to be loyal first and foremost to the U.S. even though S.H.I.E.L.D. was a United Nations facility. Also, many men and women had been members of S.H.I.E.L.D. for a long time, and they would have been much better as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D.. However, they were "too loyal to Fury", so Hill got the job to keep the Fury loyalists out.

S.H.I.E.L.D. took a downward turn. Fury's work as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. was extremely effective, and an insane amount of work had kept corruption out of the huge organization. Unfortunately, Hill wasn't as good as Fury at it, and S.H.I.E.L.D. became corrupt and weak. Crimes were committed. Criminals were "stockpiled" in prison. Worst of all, the Avengers discovered that someone was mining the anti-metal in the Savage Land using slave labor-and S.H.I.E.L.D. was the prime suspect.

Subdivisions

S.H.I.E.L.D. also has many subdivisions and other groups based off it. Two other groups have been formed from S.H.I.E.L.D.; S.W.O.R.D.,S.A.F.E., to A.R.M.O.R. .

S.W.O.R.D. stands for Sentient World Observation and Response Department. As you can easily guess, S.W.O.R.D. works with extraterrestrials. It stops extraterrestrial threats, keeps tabs on powerful aliens, etc. They are not a subdivision of S.H.I.E.L.D. but are actually a separate, yet similar group that simply works with S.H.I.E.L.D. However, they are closely affiliated with both S.H.I.E.L.D. and the United Nations. S.W.O.R.D. encountered Ord, an alien who was convinced that a mutant from Earth was destined to destroy his planet. He attempted to attack Earth to kill all the mutants but S.W.O.R.D. and the X-Men stopped him, effectively stopping an interplanetary war. The leader of S.W.O.R.D. is Abigail Brand, a tough, effective leader who stopped many crises and is extremely valuable to S.H.I.E.L.D. She was a Fury loyalist and respected him a lot and greatly dislikes Maria Hill. As for Tony Stark, he has not encountered S.W.O.R.D. or Brand yet. S.W.O.R.D. is currently trying to stop another war with a planet called Breakworld.

Since S.H.I.E.L.D. is loyal to the United Nations two countries have created their own answer to S.H.I.E.L.D. that works within their country and their country alone. The first to appear was the British version of S.H.I.E.L.D., S.T.R.I.K.E. (Special Tactical Reserve for International Key Emergencies). S.T.R.I.K.E. was British, but one of their early leaders, Tod Radcliffe, was revealed to be a traitor that worked for the Red Skull. The next leader was Lance Hunter. They worked closely with Captain Britain. However, Vixen (Captain Britain's enemy) took them over and S.T.R.I.K.E. was disbanded. The most prominent person to work for S.T.R.I.K.E. was Betsy Braddock, who had psychic powers. After leaving S.T.R.I.K.E.. she joined the X-Men as the heroine Psylocke.

S.A.F.E. is the United States answer to S.H.I.E.L.D. The name stands for Strategic Action For Emergencies. S.A.F.E. is nearly identical to S.H.I.E.L.D., except they are only in the U.S. They have fought many enemies, including Doctor Doom and Baron Heinrich Zemo. The leader is Sean Morgan, a competent leader and good soldier. Joshua Ballard is the most prolific agent, and he's extremely helpful-he's the Dum Dum Dugan of S.A.F.E..

Along with these agencies, other small groups have been formed including Euromind and Starcore.

Another group that has continually showed up over the years is the Cape Killers. They were never an official S.H.I.E.L.D. group, but S.H.I.E.L.D. agents did make up it's ranks. The term Cape Killers was given to any group of soldiers trained to hunt, subdue and in worst case scenario kill meta humans. The Cape Killers have had such members as Agent Abrams, Agent Cleery, Dum Dum Dugan, & Special Agent Marquez, and her partner Agent McAllister.

Members

Nick Fury

The most prominent, important, and effective member of S.H.I.E.L.D. is the man who runs it all, Nick Fury. Fury was born in New York City in 1921, to decorated World War I pilot Jack Fury. He and his friend Red Hargrove lusted after adventure-so they joined the U.S. Army in World War II. Nick was an adept soldier, and he was given command of the First Attack Squad-nicknamed the Howling Commandos. The Howling Commandos were extremely effective-and Fury quickly became a decorated war hero.

After the war, Fury was hit by a land mine and badly injured. The government decided to test a new formula on him-that would heal him and greatly retard his aging. This was called the Infinity Formula. It worked-Fury was restored to full strength and is still in his physical prime today. He eventually joined the CIA and became a CIA agent in Korea, also interacting with the Fantastic Four. Tony Stark hired him to be the second commander of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Fury excelled at the job. Under his leadership, S.H.I.E.L.D. grew and grew until it is now one of the most powerful organizations in the world. Fury led S.H.I.E.L.D. for over forty years, working tirelessly and keeping it powerful and secret.

However, Fury recently discovered that Latveria, led by the evil Doctor Doom, was planning to attack America. He immediately had S.H.I.E.L.D. launch a covert assault on the country, effectively stopping the massive attack that would have taken place. A year later, Latveria attacked back, and thousands were killed. Fury was blamed-and Luke Cage was injured. Captain America was angered at Fury. Eventually, this culminated in Fury being fired as commander of S.H.I.E.L.D.. A warrant was put out for his arrest, and Maria Hill took his place as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. Hill still leads S.H.I.E.L.D. and Fury is still in hiding. He keeps control over parts of S.H.I.E.L.D. and lent a base to the Secret Avengers during Civil War.

Nick Fury is infused with the Infinity Formula, meaning he barely ages at all. He is an soldier, with lots of experience as both a warrior and a leader. He is a master tactician and strategist, and is very good with all sorts of weapons. He wields great political power as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., and is a very good hand-to-hand combatant.

Nick Fury is not the only S.H.I.E.L.D. agent-not by a long shot. Many of the other important S.H.I.E.L.D. members date back from Fury's old team-the Howling Commandos.

Dum Dum Dugan

Dum Dum Dugan (Timothy Aloysius Cadwallader Dugan) was working as a circus strongman before he enlisted in World War II. He was put in the Howling Commandos, a new division led by Nick Fury. He was extremely valuable to the team-he was so strong that he was able to save them from many things that should have killed them. He was a great marksman, strongman, and leader, and he became Fury's second-in-command. When the war ended, Fury invited Dugan into S.H.I.E.L.D. as his second-in-command. Dugan has easily been the second-most-important person to S.H.I.E.L.D. His missions have included tracking down and killing a radioactive monster ( Godzilla, in the Godzilla Squad) and various independent missions to take super villains (often with Squirrel Girl). For a long time, he worked maintaining security on the Helicarrier, and working for Fury whenever needed. When Fury was replaced by Maria Hill, he was her second-in-command and was put in charge of mutant affairs. This involved conflicts with Wolverine, who he had a mysterious contact with. Eventually, he tried to resign from S.H.I.E.L.D. when Tony Stark took control. He was rejected-he was too important to S.H.I.E.L.D. to quit. He was recently shot in the chest by Daken, but he survived, and is currently in the hospital.

Gabriel Jones

Gabriel Jones was a young African-American living in New York City when a little thing called World War II popped up. Jones joined the army, and realized that he was naturally a great soldier and leader. He was put into the elite Howling Commandos and proved invaluable to the team. After the war was over, Jones served on the Godzilla Squad with other former Howling Commandos (not Fury), and later joined S.H.I.E.L.D. He ran out missions with or without other agents for S.H.I.E.L.D. until he retired, due to the events in the miniseries "Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D.." He remains retired today, living the quiet, peaceful life. He sure deserves that. He also has the honor of being the first African-American in the Howling Commandos.

Sharon Carter aka Agent 13

Agent 13 (also known as Sharon Carter), is one of the most important members of S.H.I.E.L.D.. As a young girl, Sharon loved hearing stories of her older sister Peggy, who was a World War 1 flying ace and freedom fighter. Peggy had worked with Captain America, and the two fell in love. However, Cap never learned her name, and he then froze in suspended animation. Sharon was a good fighter and loved justice, so she joined S.H.I.E.L.D. under the code-name "Agent 13" and ran out several missions for them. She kept crossing paths with Cap, who had been resurrected and they eventually fell in love. Cap wanted her to quit as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, but she refused. Eventually, her death was faked so she could be sent off on a top-secret mission. The mission failed, and she was presumed dead. Cap was never informed that her death was faked the first time. However, he eventually found her, and she rejoined S.H.I.E.L.D.. She now works as a high-level agent, reporting directly to Hill for missions. Recently, she was given a hypnotic suggestion by Dr. Faustus to help kill Captain America, and under hypnotism, shot him in the stomach after Crossbones, a sniper and Red Skull's henchman, shot him. It was also revealed that she is pregnant with Cap's baby.

Since S.H.I.E.L.D. is a major force and such a huge, powerful organization, it bound to have many enemies. Most of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s enemies are big groups-and the most powerful, fearsome, and deadly one of them all is HYDRA. HYDRA is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s archenemy. The motto of the group is "Cut off one of our heads, and two more will take it's place!" This is a reference to the Ancient Greek monster called the hydra, which fought Hercules and had the same ability. HYDRA is a terrorist group dedicated to taking over the world and destroying S.H.I.E.L.D., which has foiled them many a time.

HYDRA has actually been around for centuries. The group goes all the way back to Imperial Japan, which only sought to rule Japan. This all changed in the 1900s when Wolfgang Von Strucker joined the group. Strucker was insane, deluded, and powerful-and he quickly rose to the top of the group. he steered it away from Japan and decided on a new goal-rule the world! When he got to the top, he changed his name and got a title-he became Baron Strucker. HYDRA was originally very open, not quiet, and S.H.I.E.L.D. was actually specifically formed to fight it (as you will read later). HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. became enemies-constantly warring to take each other down. HYDRA made several daring moves. Strucker invented the "Overkill Horn", which would detonate all nuclear explosives worldwide. Later came the biological "Death-Spore Bomb". Both plots were foiled by S.H.I.E.L.D., and the latter resulted in Strucker's death.

After Baron Strucker died, HYDRA split into many mini-groups, or "heads" of HYDRA. Some of these were East Coast HYDRA, Las Vegas HYDRA, New York HYDRA, and Germany HYDRA. These factions also genetically created super agents for HYDRA, resulting in the creation of many villains. However, this backfired when the great hero Spider-Woman was created by HYDRA related. Eventually Strucker was revived, and he reunited HYDRA. They continued their war against S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Earth.

HYDRA later planned a massive attack on the U.S-they smuggled nuclear missile into America and was going to launch a bio nuclear assault on a major aquifer. They also tried to brainwash an army of heroes and villains (including Elektra and Northstar). Both times, they were foiled by S.H.I.E.L.D. and the New Avengers (including Spider-Woman, who they created). HYDRA is still extremely dangerous, and cannot be stopped easily. The only reason they don't currently rule the world is because of the heroic efforts of S.H.I.E.L.D..

The HYDRA Agent is similar to the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. He is extremely well-trained-only the elite become agents. They carry a large variety of weapons and are trained especially in stealth. HYDRA Agents often get missions to detonate, destroy, beat up, or burn things, and they are superb fighters. Some Agents of HYDRA have been Red Skull, Spider-Woman, Kingpin, and many others.

Although HYDRA is easily S.H.I.E.L.D.'s greatest enemy, it is by no means the only one. One of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s other enemies is A.I.M.

A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics) was created as a subdivision of HYDRA, by Baron Strucker. A.I.M.'s purpose was to create new technological wonders for HYDRA to use against S.H.I.E.L.D. and to take over the world. It is a group of scientists, industrialists, and technological geniuses, and originally, they provided and designed weapons, defenses, and huge assault mechanisms for HYDRA. However, HYDRA suffered a huge defeat from the U.S and Japan Armies, so A.I.M. broke off into it's own group. Like HYDRA, A.I.M.'s goal is to rule the Earth. However, unlike HYDRA, who wants to do it by force, A.I.M. seeks domination by technological means. They have created huge weapons and marvels before, and share one trait with HYDRA-they are dedicated to destroying S.H.I.E.L.D.. A.I.M. was led by the Scientist Supreme, an evil, shadowy figure where very little about him is known by S.H.I.E.L.D..

The Cosmic Cube was an intensely powerful item as it could literally alter reality to the user's whim. Red Skull once stole it and wreaked havoc with it, but that was later. The Cube was created by the scientists at A.I.M., who sought to use it to rule the world. However, the Cube actually evolved into a new creature, Kubik, and A.I.M. no longer controls it. In this vein, A.I.M. created the Super-Adaptoid, which could exactly mimic the powers and appearance of other superheroes and villains. Although it was immensely powerful, the Adaptoid contained a sliver of the Cosmic Cube that gave it its power. When the Cube became Kubik, it wanted the shard back, so it easily destroyed the creature and regained the sliver. A.I.M. also created M.O.D.O.K. (Mobile Organism Designed Only for Killing). M.O.D.O.K. was originally one of AIM's own scientists, and he took control of A.I.M. and improved it, continuing the fight to rule the world and destroy S.H.I.E.L.D.. M.O.D.O.K. still is in charge of A.I.M. Along with A.I.M., some of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s enemies are Zodiac and Godzilla.

Zodiac is a criminal organization that was created using S.H.I.E.L.D. technology. Each member is another sign of the Zodiac, and they are dedicated to world domination. Although the Zodiac mostly fights the Avengers, they often collide with S.H.I.E.L.D. in their efforts to have the world ruled by their criminal organization.

Godzilla was a radioactive monster that rose out of the waters of Tokyo, Japan. S.H.I.E.L.D. immediately responded to the crisis, and formed the Godzilla Squad out of some of its members. The Squad was led by Dum Dum Dugan (who never fully recovered from the experience), and its mission was to take down Godzilla! Godzilla caused lots of property damage around Asia and North America before it was finally driven back into the sea. Obviously, this is based on the Japanese movie in real life of the same name-minus the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.

Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man, proposed the Superhuman Registration Act, where all super humans would have to register their powers and identities. They'd basically be cops. Maria Hill, who was the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. supported the Act, and eventually it was passed. Many super humans disagreed with the Act, the most important and prolific being Captain America. S.H.I.E.L.D. was enlisted by the U.S. government-take down Cap and his anti-registration hero team, the Secret Avengers. New S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, nicknamed cape-killers, went after anti-reg heroes. S.H.I.E.L.D. was led by Maria Hill, and was fully pro-reg. Iron Man worked closely with S.H.I.E.L.D. also-he revealed his identity as Tony Stark. Many battles were fought. Eventually, Tony Stark's pro-registration side-and S.H.I.E.L.D. won. However, Maria Hill found out why she had been made the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., as aforementioned-to keep more effective "Fury loyalists" out and be loyal to the U.S. She was not supposed to be effective, and she wasn't. Dismayed, she turned leadership of S.H.I.E.L.D. over to the man she thought deserved it most-Tony Stark. Stark, also Iron Man, is currently the leader and head of S.H.I.E.L.D..

In the fallout of Secret Invasion Norman Osborn is granted the keys to the whole world and closes down S.H.I.E.L.D. and replaces it with his own special forces known as H.A.M.M.E.R. He also replaces all of the organization's Stark Tech (which had been compromised during the Secret Invasion) with technology and weapons created by Oscorp.

Nick Fury also discovers a dark secret about who as been pulling S.H.I.E.L.D.'s strings the whole time he was an agent in Secret Warriors#1.

Weapons and Equipment

S.H.I.E.L.D. has a lot of technology, important technology that is often used. Perhaps the most important is the LMD- Life Model Decoy. The Life Model Decoy is an android that is absolutely indistinguishable from whoever it impersonates. Fingerprints, DNA, hair, speech, thought patterns (for telepaths), anything, the Decoy is exactly the same. However, it is an android. LMDs are used to duplicate people and take their place if they are going to be assassinated or there is a strong chance of an attack. LMDs have been used in place of personnel since the beginning of the organization, including Jessica Drew. Most often, they have been used as a substitute for Nick Fury, who has had at least five LMDs destroyed in attempts to have him killed. These robots are a lot of the reason that many key S.H.I.E.L.D. members are still alive. The Zodiac, a criminal organization, was created using stolen S.H.I.E.L.D. LMDs. Also, LMDs have gained sentience a few times. The Deltites were a group of LMDs that gained sentience and tried to infiltrate S.H.I.E.L.D.. They were narrowly defeated by Nick Fury.

S.H.I.E.L.D. also has used robot exoskeletons and gargantuan robots to achieve its ends. Red Ronin is the most important of those. Red Ronin was a huge, super powerful robot that was used by the Godzilla Squad. The robot was destroyed by Godzilla before he was driven into the sea. It was rebuilt, but was hijacked by a mad scientist who was trying to start World War Three. It was stopped by the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. regained the remains. It has been stolen and used for evil many times, by Dr. Doom, The Hand, and Henry Gyrich. Each time, the robot has been defeated and rebuilt (by heroes like Wasp and Hulk)-only to be stolen again. Red Ronin is currently possessed and used by the evil villain The Fixer-it appears that the cycle is still going.

Of course, the most prolific technology created and used by S.H.I.E.L.D. is the Helicarrier. The Helicarrier is outfitted with weapons, security, and is constantly filled with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who are extremely effective and good fighters. The Helicarrier is always being attacked by villains, and they are barely ever successful. Read more about the Helicarrier at the top of the page. A smaller version of the Helicarrier, the Behemoth, is often used by S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents on missions, including by the Squad and by Dum Dum Dugan. The Behemoth is similar to the Helicarrier, only there is less weapons, technology, and it isn't as fast or powerful.

As for other technology, S.H.I.E.L.D. has access to an infinite amount of military-level tech. Tools, weapons, anything that's used, S.H.I.E.L.D. can get. Anything from pistols to nuclear weapons is easily attainable. Fighter jets are often used by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents when it is necessary for their mission.

Alternate Realities

Ultimate Universe (Earth-1610)

In the Ultimate Marvel universe, S.H.I.E.L.D. was started and first led by General Thunderbolt Ross, who is a major enemy of the Hulk. S.H.I.E.L.D. funded and sanctioned projects like Weapon X, which created Wolverine. A now-black Nick Fury took control of the group and was very effective. He tried to recreate the Super Soldier program, making another Captain America. the project failed and the formula turned the lead scientist on the project, Bruce Banner, into the Hulk. S.H.I.E.L.D. tried again with the Oz formula. It was responsible for the creation of Spider-Man, Green Goblin, Sandman, and Electro.

Also, Ultimate S.H.I.E.L.D. created the Ultimates, as the government enlisted Fury to create a strike force of government-sponsored superheroes. The force was similar to the Avengers in the 616 universe, and answers to Ultimate S.H.I.E.L.D..

Marvel Zombiverse (Earth-2149)

S.H.I.E.L.D. also appears in Marvel Zombies Universe. At first, some of the members are already infected by the virus when Sentry came to Earth infected. The first of the members infected were Colonel America, Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye, and Black Widow. Luke Cage is part of the Avengers. After these infections, it starts to go on from there, with the infected heroes infecting other heroes and villains while eating people completely. Daredevil becomes infected by Spider-Man after saving Nova and Nova is saved by the Fantastic Four and Thor and goes to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. S.H.I.E.L.D. has called all uninfected heroes to meet together with Nick Fury and Nick Fury tells the uninfected heroes that they must make a defensive stand against the infected. The heroes agree to this, S.H.I.E.L.D. Avengers, and many more alike, and they go fight the zombies. However, this ends in tragedy and the uninfected become infected by the virus. The heroes were no match for the zombies and they all subdue to infection, becoming one of them. S.H.I.E.L.D. becomes no more and all of the members are killed or infected.

Mutant X (Earth-1298)

S.H.I.E.L.D. 2099

In this reality, S.H.I.E.L.D. now stands for Save Humanity by Intervention in the Evolution of Life-form Deviants. It is now a mutant hating group that influence humans to violently hate mutants. It is still being led by Nick Fury.

In the 2099 titles S.H.I.E.L.D. was controlled by Doctor Doom, who appointed such people as one of the former X-MenJunkpile, and 2099's Punisher, Jake Gallows, as members of S.H.I.E.L.D..

Foundations

S.H.I.E.L.D. wishes to debrief Tony Stark about his escape from Afghanistan and arrests Obadiah Stane for planning the kidnap and murder of Stark as well as dealing weapons to terrorists. It also provides a cover story for what happened at Stark Industries during Iron Man and Iron Monger's fight, a story that Stark does not stick to instead revealing his secret to the world.

S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Black Widow recruits Tony Stark as a consultant for the Avenger Initiative and organizes Senator Stern to present Tony Stark and James Rhodes with their medals. S.H.I.E.L.D. sends agent Coulson to New Mexico to find Mjolnir. The organization is also shown to be monitoring various superhumans across the globe, with one indicator on a map hinting at the existence of Wakanda and the Black Panther.

S.H.I.E.L.D. had taken all of Jane Foster's research. Thor fights with some of Agent Coulson's men before being captured and interrogated by Coulson about his identity, origin and training. Mjolnir is also kept in a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility. Loki send The Destroyer to attack Thor and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, after The Destoryer was defeated Thor told Coulson to return Jane's work and in return Coulson could count on Thor's help when needed. In a post-credits scene, Dr. Selvig is taken to a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility where he meets Nick Fury. Fury asks Selvig to study the recently-discovered Cosmic Cube, which holds untold power, to which Selvig agrees. It is then revealed that Selvig is under the control of Loki, who has been transported to Earth.

S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists in the Arctic uncover Captain America's frozen body in The Red Skull's airship from WWII. Rogers awakens in a room designed to appear as if he were still in the early 1940s. Deducing the truth and escaping to Times Square, Rogers learns from S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Nick Fury that he has been asleep for nearly 70 years, and they had wanted to acclimate his reentry into modern times. In a deleted scene it is revealed that S.H.I.E.L.D. was once called the Strategic Scientific Reserve.

S.H.I.E.L.D. officially assembles the Avengers (Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, the Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye) in response to the arrival of Loki, who goes on a rampage and steals the Tesseract from the organization's Project Pegasus facility. The Helicarrier is also shown off for the first time. After fighting off a Chitauri invasion of New York, the Avengers go their separate ways, with Fury stating that the team will reunite should a greater threat arrive.

Taking place after the events of The Avengers, Agent Coulson assembles his own team of agents, consisting of pilot and martial artist Melinda May, master spy Grant Ward, genius techno-whizzes Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons, and hacker/activist Skye. The team travels across the globe to deal with various incidents while clashing with the creators of a mysterious project known as Centipede, which aims to create an army of Super-Soldiers. Little is known about the organization, or the mysterious woman involved in it, Raina.

During this time, more information about S.H.I.E.L.D. is revealed, including the revelation that S.H.I.E.L.D. actively monitors and hides the existence of various people with superhuman abilities, known as "Gifted." The team is briefly joined by a new agent, Mike Peterson, who possesses superhuman abilities as a result of experimentation by Centipede. Mike is apparently killed in a massive explosion while trying to save Coulson.

In the two years since The Avengers, Captain America and Black Widow have been working as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. S.H.I.E.L.D. director Alexander Pierce launches Project Insight, which involves the use of three next-gen Helicarriers that can target and eliminate threats to world peace. After Nick Fury is assassinated by the mysterious Winter Soldier, Captain America and Black Widow learn that S.H.I.E.L.D. has been infiltrated by HYDRA, with Pierce acting as their leader.

It is shown that the Red Skull's chief scientist, Arnim Zola, had joined S.H.I.E.L.D. after World War 2, and slowly used his influence to allow HYDRA to grow and fester within its ranks. Project Insight will ultimately allow HYDRA to conquer the Earth after killing thousands of people that HYDRA view as potential threats (including the Avengers and Stephen Strange).

With help from The Falcon, Captain America and the others learn evade HYDRA and learn that Nick Fury has survived his gunshot wounds, and is preparing to strike back against Pierce. During the final battle, the three Helicarriers are destroyed, as is the Triskelion, while Fury kills Pierce for his treachery. S.H.I.E.L.D. is officially disbanded and its secrets are publicly released online, with Black Widow strongly hinting that the safety of the world has now fallen to the Avengers.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Uprising (2014)

During the events of The Winter Soldier, it is revealed that the HYDRA organization and turncoat agent John Garrett are the true masterminds behind the Centipede project, and that Grant Ward was actually a spy for HYDRA the entire time. Ward murders Agent Victoria Hand in order to allow Garrett to continue his scheme. With S.H.I.E.L.D. destroyed, Coulson and his remaining team members go on the run, since the various former members of the organization are now considered terrorists by the U.S. government and Glenn Talbot. During this time, the team also contends with the return of Mike Peterson, who has been rebuilt as the vicious cyborg Deathlok. They are also joined by Agent Antoine Triplett, the grandson of Gabe Jones.

At the close of the season, Garrett is killed and HYDRA is thwarted once again, though Raina manages to escape. Ward is taken into custody while Deathlok, now free from HYDRA, leaves for parts unknown in order to redeem himself. In the final moments, Nick Fury informs Coulson that it is his job to rebuild S.H.I.E.L.D. from the ground up in order to protect the world.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2 (2014-2015)

The Cast of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2

Following a time skip, S.H.I.E.L.D. is now shown rebuilt as a small shadow organization run by Coulson. In addition to the cast of Season 1, the team has also recruited mechanic Alphonso "Mack" MacKenzie and British mercenary Lance Hunter. Isabelle Hartley and an agent named Idaho also briefly join the organization before being killed by Carl Creel. Mockingbird also joins the cast during the course of the season.